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Iris Salsman -
Maria's client since 1995 - published following article in
St. Louis POST-DISPATCH West,
May 2002

Facial Esthetics

BEAUTY REALLY IS SKIN DEEP

BY IRIS SALSMAN
SALSMAN AND LUNDGREN

Over the course of a lifetime, I have spent a fortune on my skin. From childhood eczema to adolescent acne, I’ve been a dermatologist’s dream come true. If there’s been a new treatment avail­able, I’ve tried it. A new product? I’ve bought it. To be honest, I’ve probably invested more in my face than my wardrobe. So you can imagine my intrigue when I spotted an ad in this very newspaper touting “the best facial you’ll ever have.”

“That’s a pretty bold statement,” I thought. “I’d better check this out.” And that’s how I met Maria Sokolovskaya, med­ical esthetician par excellence.

An elegant woman with a no-nonsense attitude and a finely tuned sense of humor, Maria grew. up in Moscow where she owned Art of Appearance, a nationally renowned school and image center where more than 750 women enrolled each year to study fash­ion, skin care, image development and differ­ent handcrafts. In fact, Maria herself was a national personality, authoring 10 books, hosting a major television show and publish­ing her own magazine.

When she left Russia to settle in St. Louis, determined to rebuild her professional career, Maria attended esthetics schools throughout North America, earning certifica­tions from specialized programs worldwide. In 1994, she opened Maria’s Skin Care Studio in a back room of a local hair salon. Today, that fledgling enterprise has grown to become Art of Appearance Skin Care and Image Center, attracting loyal followers throughout the Midwest. I’m one of them.

So what sets Maria apart from other estheticians? First, there are her rules. Maria tells you what you have to do — and exactly how to do it. She also is a firm believer in positive thinking and relaxation. According to Maria, the face, especially around the eye and brow area, shows the first signs of an over-stressed life. To remedy this, she has cre­ated an entire menu of customized treat­ments to cleanse, invigorate and rejuvenate even the most lack-luster skin. Maria’s credo is, “every woman is beautiful, if she knows how.”

In addition to her do’s and don’ts, Maria also has strong opinions about the skin care products she uses. I was amazed at rise num­ber of lines she carries. She explains that skin care is a constant learning process due to ever-changing breakthroughs in the industry. Since there is no one ideal company, she selects the very best from all of them.

Then there are the procedures. At Art of Appearance, there is no such thing as a “stan­dard” facial. Depending on the condition of your skin — determined by close scrutiny under a powerful magnifier — Maria designs a customized procedure. And that’s only for starters. There are specialized treatments for acne, brown spots, dilated capillaries, skits tags, clogged pores, under-eye bags and dark circles, dry skin — and more.

But that’s not all. Once Maria has whipped your skin into shape, she moves on to more advanced treatments that involve hi-tech machines such as the Renaissance non-surgical face-lift, dermabrasion, cold laser and pulsed-light hair removal. Sometimes she even combines procedures into one super-powerful treatment that is more effective than anything you’ve ever had. It’s to die for —    and the results are unbelievable.

So now that I’m hooked on Maria’s treat­ments, do I look different? I think so. And I feel better, too. We can’t stop rime, but we can make the most of the time we have left.